Device for locking the drums of sleeping-car berths.



No. 867,410. PATENTED 00T. I, 19o?.

' GEIOOR. i

DEVICE EOE LOCKING IEE DRUMS 0E SLEEPING GAE EEEI'ES. APPLICATION FILED DEUJI, I1905. RENEWED FEB. 28. 1907.

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No. Gef/,410.

PATGNTED GCT. 1, 1907. G. H. POOR. Y DEVIGG PoR LOCKING THE DRUMS 0F SLEEPING GAR BERTHS.

APPLICATION -FlLBD DBO. 7, 1905. BBNEWBD FEB. 28, 1907.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Fig''- fue NaRRls PETER: ca, wAsmNn'wN a c UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE HAMILTON POOR, OF PORTLAND, MAINE, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO THE AMERICAN PALACE CAR COMPANY, OF PORTLAND, MAINE, `A CORPORATION OF MAINE.

DEVICE FOR LOCKING THE DRUMS F SLEEPING-CAR BERTI-IS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 1, 1907.

Application filed December 7, 1905, Serial No. 290,817. Renewed February 28, 1907. Serial No. 359.828.

To all whom ttmay concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE HAMILTON Poort, a citizen of the United States, residing in Portland, in the county of Cumberland and State of Maine, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Devices for Locking the Drums of Sleeping-Car Berths, of which the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification.

My invention relates to railway cars and in particular to the devices for lifting sleeping berths from pockets below the floor of the car.

A type of railway passenger car for use either as a parlor or sleeping car has been developed that has the advantages of two distinct cars. 'In this car all the sleeping apparatus may be put away in pockets under the floor, this leaves the interior of the car unobstructed so it may be used as a parlor car; vor the berths may be lifted from the pockets, for instance by spring actuated drums, which may be connected with folding trap doors that are adapted to cover the pockets except when the car is to be used as a sleeper. The doors are locked upright and the spring drums lift the berths from the pockets, after which the chairs and associated furnishings that have been used during the day may be packed in the pockets, this leaves the car with nothing but sleeping arrangements above the floor.

It has been found objectionable to have the springs acting to lift the berths except at the times when the 30 doors are upright and the porter is ready to position and secure the berths, as unless the berths are secured in some way in the pockets, when the doors are lifted the berths might at once start to rise, endangering either some person or the mechanism, also when closing the doors after the berths have been put in the pockets, the berths may interfere with the doors, and moreover the strain of the cords connecting the drums and berths chafes and wears the cords, particularly at the junction ofthe doors and floor.

The object of this invention is to prevent the springs from acting on the cords that support the berths, except when the porter has the trap doors positioned properly to hold the berths in elevated position; and my invention consists in devices for locking the winding drums carrying the cords supporting the berths to prevent rotation of the drums so the springs can have no effect on the cords, the said devices being controlled preferably by the position of the bolts which lock the trap doors to the side of the car, the invention further consisting of the devices and their combinations that will be more particularly pointed out.

In an embodiment of the invention capable of giving good results, the trap doors are hinged at the floor and supported upright by bolts passing through the -top of the door into sockets on the side of the car. Drums having coiled springs are mounted in the trap doors, and cords attached to and wound about the peripheries of the drums are connected to the berths. The edges of the drums may be rougllened or serrated, and pawls are mounted so they may be forced into Contact with the edges of the drums or else positioned so as to be clear of the drums, the pawls being arranged so that, as soon as the porter withdraws the bolt supporting a trap door from its socket on the side of the car, the pawls will at once come into contact with the edges of the drums to prevent the springs from turning the drums. This in effect locks the drums as the pawls check motion of the drums in a direction to lift the berths, and as therberths should at this time be in the bottoms of the pockets there is nothing tending t0 turn the drums in the reverse direction.

My preferred arrangement for accomplishing the above results is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1, shows a partial cross section of a car with a trap door upright ready to be fastened to the side of the car, the spring drum being at this time locked. Fig. 2, shows an elevation of a spring drum mounted in a trap door, the drum having locking serratures on its edge. Fig. 3, shows an enlarged view of one of the druns and its connection with the bolt of the trap door. Fig. 4, shows a vertical section of the trap door with an end elevation of the mechanism for actuating the pawl. Fig. 5, shows a detail.

The pockets a below the floor b communicate with the interior of the car through openings that are covered by trap doors c hinged to the frame of the car at about the floor level. The trap doors may stand upright and are held in such position by bolts d that enter sockets e fastened to the side of the carf, the bolts being actuated in any convenient way as by extending the bolts toward the opposite edges of the trap doors.

Each trap door has four drums g actuated by spiral springs h, and 4an end of a cord t is fastened to each drum, wound over the periphery of the drum and its other end fastened to a corner of the berths j. The effect of this arrangement it will be noticed is to support the berths by the springs, the sets of springs of each berth having tension sufficient to lift the berth from the pocket to about the position it should take when the car is fitted as a sleeper. The springs may act however to only balance the berths which are usually lifted into position. To keep the drums from turning except when the doors are in proper position pawls k may interlock with serrations or corrugations on the edges of the drums, the pawls being guided by the inclined plates Z secured to the door, against which plates the wedge shaped portion m of the pawl slides. The

pawls are mounted on rods n sliding in guides o fastened to the door, a threaded adjustment of the rods being supplied so the pairs of pawls will act in unison on the drums. The guides are slotted to allow the pawls to recede from the drums, when released by means of the bell cranks p connected between the rods n and the bolts d, springs q attached to the door pushing the pawls clear as they leave the drums, and this 1notion is preferably aided by arranging the bell cranks so that as they lift the pawls they will also swing off from the drums. Springs T push the pawls into conf tact with the drums as the bolts of the trap doors leave the sockets. The bell cranks at their connection with the bolts d may be forked as at s, and the bolts may be flattened to form tappets t and u each side oi the forked ends of the bell cranks, this arrangement allowing suificient motion of the bolts to enter and leave the sockets, and the springs r insure the locking of the` drums Whatever the position of the doors as soon as the bolts are started from the sockets. Furthermore, the bell cranks may be made in one piece, or made of two arms adjustable with relation to each other so the pawls may be made to act on the drums when the bolts are in the proper position.

In Fig. l, I haveshown the berths j in the pockets a, the trap doorsare liited upright and the bolts d just entering the sockets e on the side of the car. In this position the drums are locked, but as the bolts enter the sockets the tappets t strike the orked ends s of the bell cranks and lift the pawls c from the drums g, this renders the springs active to raise the berths j. When the berths have been put in the pockets a, the drums will be locked, as the porter withdraws the bolts d from the sockets e, by the springs r pushing the pawls into con,- tact with the drums as soon as the tappets t have reeeded sutliciently, but ii the springs should fail, as the bolts are further withdrawn the tappets u will strike the serale forked ends s of the bell cranks and push the pawls into contact with the drums containing the springs h. Sometimes I put springs between the tappets u and the bell cranks to save labor in careiul adjustlnent oi the parts.

Having described my invention, I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States:

l. In a railway ear, pockets below the lloor of the car. trap doors hinged at the iloor line and devices for supporting the said doors from the side ot' the car, combined with spring drums in the doors, berths hung troni toi-tls wound about the spring drums and means to lock and free the said spring drums substantially as described.

2. [n a railway ear, a trap door and a bolt to hold the door in upright position, combined with winding' drums mounted in the door, plates on the door inclined toward the drums, pawls supported between the drums :1nd plates, and means to wedge the pawls between the drums and plates to interrupt the motion of the drums, substantially as described.

3. In a railway car, pairs of berth supportingl drums and devices for locking the drums, combined ivith means for adjusting the locking devices of each pair o1' drums to aet in unison, substantially as described.

4. In a railway car, a trap door, a bolt to position the doei' in a car, and toothed drums having winding;- springs and cords t0 support berths, combined with pawls at tached to rods mounted in guides in the door, plates to direct the pawls into contact with the drums, and eonnoc tions to actuate the pawls from the bolt, substantially as described.

5. In a railway car, trap doors, bolts tio position the doors in a car, and sp1-ing drums to support berths, eoin bined with pawls to lock the drums, bell cranks connected with the pawls, and tappets on the bolts to actnate the pawls :1t some positions of the said bolts, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this speciiication in the presence ot two subscribing witnesses.

GEORGE HAMILTON P0011.

Witnesses:

Lne II. Llnr, Crus. F. HOUSE.

Cri 

